Who Should I Start? Jerome Ford or MarShawn Lloyd

Friday, May 2, 11:25 PM

Cleveland Browns rookie running back Jerome Ford agreed to a pay cut with the team on Friday, reducing his 2025 salary from $3.486 million to a guaranteed $1.75 million, a league source told The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Mary Kay Cabot. It means that free-agent RB Nick Chubb will likely not be re-signing with the Browns this offseason. The move to reduce Ford's salary comes after the Browns selected former Ohio State RB Quinshon Judkins with the 33rd overall pick in last week's NFL draft. Cleveland also added to the RB room and took former Tennessee rusher Dylan Sampson at No. 126 overall. Ford, a fifth-rounder in 2022, led the team with 565 yards on 104 carries (5.4 yards per carry) and three touchdowns with Chubb coming off a serious knee injury in 2023. The 25-year-old Ford is technically still atop the team's RB depth chart, but his reduction in pay is a clear sign that Judkins will have the opportunity to become the RB1 sooner than later in 2025.

Thursday, May 22, 10:50 PM

The Athletic's Matt Schneidman writes that Green Bay Packers running back MarShawn Lloyd (appendix) is currently healthy and without restrictions during offseason work as he heads into his sophomore season in the NFL. Lloyd, a third-round pick last year, was supposed to be Josh Jacobs' backup in 2024 while providing an intriguing speed and pass-catching element to the backfield, but injuries limited him to just one game. A healthy Lloyd should easily be Jacobs' backup despite Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks exceeding expectations a year ago. In addition to appendicitis, Lloyd missed time last year with ankle and hamstring injuries. He is extremely talented and has the tools to eventually be a three-down back in the NFL, but after a lost rookie season, he'll pretty much only be a handcuff for Jacobs in ingle-year fantasy leagues in 2025.